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Confidence In An Open NVIDIA Strategy?

03-15-2008, 09:10 AM

Phoronix: Confidence In An Open NVIDIA Strategy?

Back during CES 2008 we reported that NVIDIA may be plotting an open-source strategy (according to a NVIDIA partner) as the ATI/AMD camp has been on a spree with releasing NDA-free specifications to the OSS community and supporting two open source drivers (Radeon and RadeonHD). Since then, Intel has also joined this open bandwagon by releasing the G965/G35 programming documentation in full (2D, 3D, video, everything) even though they have already have a reliable open-source driver.While NVIDIA has yet to publicize their intentions nor have we been able to get anyone at NVIDIA to confirm any of this information, something does definitely appear to be going on within their Santa Clara offices in regards to an improved Linux state...

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By waiting so long to announce their open source intentions, NVIDIA is wasting Nouveau developers' time and resources because pretty much all their work will have gone to waste (think AVIVO driver).

I don't think Nouveau work will turn in a waste of time and resource: Nvidia "strategy" smells of vaporware to me. Who cares about a "strategy"? We need no stinking strategy! We need specs and/or good, complete and unobfuscated open drivers and (even better) co-operation (Yay, FOSS is based on cooperation and coding, NOT market-alike strategies) with X, Mesa/Gallium3d and Nouveau teams. NOW! Everything else is crap.

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You sure won't get anywhere with that attitude - because things simply don't work that way.

Strangely, they might become to be working that way. ATI is very definitely keeping their word and Intel's following suit.

Actions speak louder than marketspeak. Either you plan on fixing the FOSS situation with regards to your drivers and DO it, or you don't. Spare us your "strategies", NVidia. Either do something or come right out and say you're not and face THAT music.

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One of my friends bought almost the exact some thing a week ago, T61/T9300/2GB... but with the A/G/N wifi+bluetooth and 9-cell battery. Yours could be an R61 though.

The thing is, he looked around a lot and wanted ATI graphics in a 15.4" notebook with a T9xxx series processor, and literally couldn't find any. Dell doesn't have the new 45nm C2Duos yet, HP didn't have ATI graphics in such a notebook, and neither did Sony when you customize it on each of their websites. There is probably a good reason for this like a lack of the appropriate chipsets or something. NONE of the notebooks with ATI discrete graphics have a T9xxx processor on Newegg.

Sidenote: He got the WXGA screen, which is still advertised as having a max of 1440x900 (among 4 other resolutions, WTF?) but had 1280x800 (like it's supposed to be), and since they don't offer a 1440x900 (WXGA+) anymore, they refunded him $56.25 (which is how much the WSXGA+ upgrade is), or he had the option of waiting another 2 weeks until they sent him the correct one. He took the refund.

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By waiting so long to announce their open source intentions, NVIDIA is wasting Nouveau developers' time and resources because pretty much all their work will have gone to waste (think AVIVO driver).

Aye, Nvidia is risking angering the people most qualified to work on open drivers. Well I think they'll be happy but still I wonder what they are gaining by dawdling...Unless they plan to release a completely open driver from day one...I can dream...

also strategy is not a product, it is only a method. I wonder what they have in mind that requires so much planning

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Wow, so the T61 ship date was estimated to be April 3rd (http://www.phoronix.net/image.php?id...1_notebook_lrg) and I've just been informed the notebook shipped out already... On the first business day, now that's impressive and has beaten all of my previous Lenovo ship times